not so bad waking up to this, eh?

I’ve just returned from West Texas from a long Easter weekend for the Railroad Revival Tour. Mumford & Sons, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, and Old Crow Medicine Show performed at Marfa’s El Cosmico as part of a six city tour along the railroad.

To sum up the experience in one word, it was Marfabulous. Is that a word? It is now.

I’ve been traveling to Marfa and West Texas for the past year, thanks to my friend John Demers. And this trip I managed to talk about 10 of my friends into making the trip with me. A little bribery of amazing bands didn’t hurt.

I had a great time showing them around Marfa and West Texas. We drove down to the border and did the River Road trip through Presidio County, Terlingua, and Lajitas. After making this trip 4 times I’m still in awe of the beauty of our great state, even in the midst of a drought. I’m convinced more than ever that we live in the greatest state of our nation, and I am lucky to have shared these experiences will some awesome peeps.

I’ll be posting some videos later this week of the amazing music performances.

I didn’t take as many photos this time, but here are a select few from me:

Flickr

Tumblr

Instagram

And a Flickr group from our group of peeps: Marfa Bound

As usual, while I am in Marfa, I’m always planning my next trip back. Won’t you come along on the next trip?

So here are a few stories in pictures.

Marfa: http://www.flickr.com/photos/metropolitician/sets/72157625437236927/

Marathon, TX + Gage Hotel: http://www.flickr.com/photos/metropolitician/sets/72157625449825055/

La Loma del Chivo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/metropolitician/sets/72157625437236927/

Hope you enjoy.

December 4 – Wonder. How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year? (Author: Jeffrey Davis)

Photography. I’ve always been interested in Photography, as my father is a long time photographer. He gave me his old Nikon this year, a manual film camera, and I’ve really enjoyed playing with it. I’ve also been fortunate that my friend Ed Schipul has lent me his camera and a few lenses this week while I’m in West Texas. Check a a few of the pics I’ve taken with it: http://www.flickr.com/photos/metropolitician/sets/

December 5 – Let Go. What (or whom) did you let go of this year? Why? (Author: Alice Bradley)

Unnecessary worry of perfection. It feels good to not try to be perfect all the time.

December 6 – Make. What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it? (Author: Gretchen Rubin)

Ha! I just MADE a deck with my two hands. Well, and some handy tools. I busted up concrete, moved earth, and  leveled and built a deck. That was 3 days ago, and I’m still sore. It was very satisfying making something with a few tools, materials, and my muscles. ;-)

December 7 – Community. Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2010? What community would you like to join, create or more deeply connect with in 2011? (Author: Cali Harris)

In 2010 I’ve strived to connect with communities outside of Houston. While we have a strong community here in Houston, there is much to learn from other communities world wide. I’ve been fortunate to have clients in LA, DC and NYC this year, and I’ve enjoyed getting to know those communities and learn from what they are doing that works.

December 8 – Beautifully Different. Think about what makes you different and what you do that lights people up. Reflect on all the things that make you different – you’ll find they’re what make you beautiful. (Author: Karen Walrond)

This was a tough one. It’s hard to figure out what makes you different from others. So I turned to my travel partner, and his response was that he thought what makes me different is “Your openness to the excitement of change.” So I’m gonna go with that.

December 9 – Party Prompt: Party. What social gathering rocked your socks off in 2010? Describe the people, music, food, drink, clothes, shenanigans. (Author: Shauna Reid)

Lots and lots of parties this year! Gotta say that my birthday, a day full of surprise events, thanks to my best friends, was the most amazing thing I attended. Surrounded by all those I love the most.  A few pics here of the experience: http://blog.hollyhoytphotography.com/?p=787

December 10 – Wisdom Wisdom. What was the wisest decision you made this year, and how did it play out? (Author: Susannah Conway)

My grandmother passed away this summer. In a big family, it’s often hard for everyone to get to speak at the funeral. My dad is one of 10 kids, and they asked me if I, the oldest granddaughter, would like to give the eulogy. I’m so grateful they gave me the opportunity, and that I had the strength to deliver the speech. You can read what I read here.

December 11 – 11 Things What are 11 things your life doesn’t need in 2011? How will you go about eliminating them? How will getting rid of these 11 things change your life? (Author: Sam Davidson)

1. Exhaustion (more sleep)
2. Bad Eating Habits (eat better)
3. Perfectionism (see #1…it’s exhausting)
4. Negative people (ignore negative energy)
5. Information overload (weed the twitter stream!)
6.  Self-doubt (believing more in my abilities)
7. Debit (pay it off!)
8. Others keeping me from doing things
9. Letting others affect my attitude
10. Oversharing
11. Ignoring my intuition

If you’re a reader of this blog, it’s no surprise that my most alive moment of 2010 was in Marfa, TX. Thinking back on the past year, many of my favorite moments occurred there and throughout parts of West Texas. I’ll never forget 2010 as the year I decided to make this West Texas town part of my life.

I had the privilege earlier this year, of working with Bright Sky Press author, and good friend, John Demers. John has been traveling to Marfa over the last few years and has published a series of murder mystery tales that take place in Marfa, Big Bend and along the Mexico border. As part of promotion for the book, we took two groups of journalists to the tiny western town to experience the atmosphere John describes in his books.

I had heard about Marfa for years. As a buzz word in the Houston arts community, I had always been curious about the town and was excited to get to travel to see what everyone was talking about. I really had no idea what to expect, and now, thinking back, I wouldn’t have even be able to prepare for what I discovered.

It was magical. And I’ve been unable to find the description that does my trip justice since then.

The juxtaposition of Donald Judd’s minimalist, cold, concrete structures sitting in a pasture with farm animals; the quiet, sleepy, lazy main street; the character-like locals who all seemed to turn up at every spot at the exact right time like some Truman Show scene; the striking beauty of the hard and dangerous Presidio County border towns.

I still can’t describe it. But all I know is I think of it often, like after your first kiss. You’re so curious, you can’t believe it took you this long to discover, and can’t wait to do it again.

I felt most alive in 2010, returning to Marfa for a second time in May, sitting in a window, atop the Courthouse, overlooking Highland Ave. John was speaking to the journalists in the background, but all I kept thinking was how lucky I was to be staring off for miles into a small town where no one knew my name, and no one cared how many Twitter followers I had, and how forward I was looking to getting lost in my thoughts over the next few days.

This feeling has stuck with me since that day. I strive to get it back. I’m actually returning in a few days with John to fix up his new place there, and can’t wait.

You’ll no doubt be hearing much more on Marfa in the #reverb10 recaps, as it was such a special memory of 2010 for me.

More of my Marfa photos here.

Blog posts from first two trips here.

Less pics this time, more enjoying things with my own eyes. Here are a few of the trip thus far.

New stuff this time includes Austin Street Cafe and Pizza Foundation. John’s cooking dinner at Q Wine Bar tonight and we’re attending a Star Watching Party at El Cosmico.

More later. More Marfa.

image by Katie Laird

I awoke on our final day in West Texas, a little bittersweet. I knew we’d be returning home the next morning, yet was very excited for our River Road trip to Presidio, Terlingua, Big Bend and Alpine. In 2 short days I had fallen in love with the charm of Marfa, and had already decided to make it a part of the rest of my travel life. Although I still couldn’t quite put my finger on what was so special about this place, I knew a piece of me had changed. It was the most relaxed I had been in months. Maybe years.

Could it be the distance from deadlines, clients, errands, events that led to this peaceful escape? I wasn’t sure what it was. But I was sure I wouldn’t be able to get this town out of my head.

John came by the casita Sunday morning and made us omelettes, the perks of traveling with a chef are endless. ;-) We fueled up and embarked on our 6 hour trek that would take us to Alpine, TX, where we’d end the evening with dinner at the CF Ranch.

We headed due south of Marfa, to the Ghost Town of Shafter, TX. We traveled in a caravan of 2 cars, John, Kay, Katie, and Nancy in one, and Jenny, Laura, and I in the other. Every so often John would pull over and give us a photo opp, while he sprinkled in interesting facts and stories of the Rio Grande Mexican border towns. It was the perfect way to experience the drive.

We arrived in Presidio and stopped for a rest at Fort Leaton, once the site of a pioneer trading post. Jenny and I had fun wandering around. I forgot my camera but hope she posts some of her pics. We would have made kick-ass pioneers. Natch.

We headed on down to Lijitas (seriously, how many times in a lifetime can  you say that?), and on the way stopped at Contrabando. Which it seems can only translate into one thing in English. No, not contraband, MOVIES! We visited a dilapidated movie set on the Rio Grande that had seen better days, but only added to the desert effect. A few pics below. More on flickr.

After some movie set snooping, we piled back in the car and headed for Terlingua. You may be familiar with Terlingua in the context of Chili, as when you enter the town, the sign boasts, Birthplace to All chili Cook-offs Worldwide. Boastful much? We had to imagine the place crawling with campers, cookers, and hippies, as any other time but the Cookoff, the town might as well be deserted. We stopped for a beer and impromptu karaoke and were on to Alpine.

We had been driving for 5 hours, and needless to say we were famished. Luckily, when we arrived at the CF Ranch, ranch executive Mike Micallef was there to greet us with steaks ready. We were never so happy to see burning coals.

We chatted with Mike about the history of the Ranch, his family restaurant Reata, in both Fort Worth and in Alpine, and some of the activities that take place on the ranch: photo shoots, film shoots, hunting trips, and, you know, the making of the STEAKS: cattle. John first met Mike when they began work on a collaborative cookbook, Legendary Texas Cooking. Former lives as a Polo player, rattlesnake wrangler, and…hedge fund trader?!–Mike proved to us that it was true what we had heard the night before in Marfa…you’ve got to be a character or you just fade away.

After some Twitter and Facbebook talk with Cowboy Mike–yep, Mike’s on twitter!–we gathered our things, thanked Mike for the hospitality, and headed back to Marfa, relishing in the amazing meal that we had just eaten. On a badass ranch. Cooked by a tall, dark, and handsome cowboy. These city girls weren’t quite ready to return to the bright lights of Houston just yet. We made plans to return to visit West Texas in May. We knew we couldn’t stay away for long.

My Flickr Set

Katie Laid Flickr Set

Jenny Flickr Stream

The second part of our day began at Cochineal Restaurant, with an amazing dinner of fried chicken, biscuits, and mashed potatoes. The modern, red-accented decor was a perfect juxtaposition to the home cooked faire. It was a perfect Saturday afternoon meal.

Cochineal

After dinner, we walked across the street to the Marfa Book Store for John’s reading and book signing. It was a packed crowd, as all of Marfa came out to support their prodigal son. We chatted with the adorable Tim Johnson, owner of the book store, and checked out the quaint gallery attached to the store.

John reading at Marfa Book Store

We headed back to Cochineal for dessert and some conversation on the patio, then back to Padre’s. Fellow Houstonian and El Orbits front man-turned-Mr. Marfa, David Beebe, invited us out to visit his restaurant and bar, Padre’s, while we were in Marfa. Apparently, it’s the only place in town for a beer and a band. We had visited with him the night before, and headed back on Saturday for more mixing with the Marfa locals. Beebe’s quite the character, even in Marfa, in a town where, as a local girl near the fire pit explained to us, “You’ve got to be eccentric here, or you just fade away.”

It was around that fire pit that we encountered Cowboy Ty Mitchell. A 6’4″ slender man, who we nicknamed Sam Elliot 2.0. He was everything we expected to find in a sleepy West Texas town, and nothing we could tear ourselves away from.

Cowboy Ty

We sat and talked with Ty for hours. He told us story after story, sprinkling in the most amazing sidebar quotes that had us giggling like school girls. Stories of him in the military in Central America, descriptions of life in Marfa, all while rolling and smoking his own cigarettes. Natch.

Ty told us that he’s scored a part in the next Cohen Brothers movie, entirely believable, as there is not one person I can thinking that embodies “cowboy” more than Ty.

We sat and observed the local Marfa folks as the waiter who served us dinner arrived and kissed her boyfriend, Tim, the owner of the Marfa Book Store, who of course hugged Cowboy Ty, and high fived the others around the fire pit. There was something magical unfolding about our experience in Marfa, and we all felt entirely privileged to be observing life in this small Texas town.

[full set here]